Prague, Budapest and Bucharest compared: prices, buying costs, permits for non-EU buyers, rental tax, short-term letting and residence, as of October 2026.
Czechia, Hungary and Romania are three EU markets in Central and Eastern Europe that attract buyers who live in the region, including many Russian- and Polish-speaking residents. They are not in the euro area (the crown, forint and leu), they have different purchase procedures, and for non-EU buyers they differ: Hungary requires an official permit, Romania restricts land, and Czechia is the most open. This comparison draws on our guides for Czechia, Hungary and Romania, dated October 2026. Figures are indicative; confirm every point with a local lawyer.
Prices
The three sources measure different things in different currencies, so we do not convert them; use today's exchange rate and compare like with like.
Prague: apartments averaged about CZK 153,100 per m² in the first half of 2026, see our report, and older flats reached a record, see that report. One aggregator puts Brno at roughly CZK 90,000 to 120,000 per m².
Budapest: a Housiko index (July 2026) put the median asking price at about HUF 1.34 million per m², from roughly HUF 1.96 million in District V to about HUF 0.85 million in District XXIII. Around Lake Balaton, listing portals reported about HUF 1.27 million per m² in Siofok and HUF 1.5 million in Balatonfured. See also Hungary's housing market slows.
Bucharest: according to Storia (reported for August 2026), average asking prices for apartments were about 2,160 euro per m² in Bucharest, 3,298 in Cluj-Napoca and 2,342 in Brasov. All are asking prices, not final transaction prices.
Buying costs and taxes
Czechia: the 4% acquisition tax was abolished by Act 386/2020 for transfers registered from 1 December 2019, see the official tax information. What remains is the cadastre fee of CZK 2,000, legal, escrow and agent fees; secondary sources put total buyer costs at roughly 3% to 6%.
Hungary: acquisition duty of 4% of the price (2% on the part above HUF 1 billion), paid by the buyer after the tax office issues a bill; a lawyer is required by law to draft and countersign the contract, with fees around 1% plus 27% VAT (reported), and a small land registry fee.
Romania: notary fee often cited at roughly 0.65% to 2% of the price, a land book registration fee of about 0.15%, and the seller pays a tax of 3% of the sale value (property held up to 3 years) or 1% (above 3 years). For new builds, standard VAT rose to 21% on 1 August 2025; a transitional 9% rate for a narrow category of homes was extended to 30 September 2026, so check whether it still applies to a specific deal.
See total cost of ownership abroad for a budgeting checklist.
Who may buy
Czechia is the most open. EU and EEA citizens face no restrictions on apartments and houses, and according to the sources we opened non-EU citizens can also buy apartments and houses in practice; land, especially agricultural land, is a separate question for the lawyer.
Hungary: EU, EEA and Swiss citizens buy without a permit. Everyone else needs the consent of the government office of the county or Budapest district. The office has about 45 days (often a few weeks), the fee is reported at HUF 50,000 or 65,000, and the contract is conditional on the permit. A refusal is possible if the acquisition is contrary to the public interest, but for an ordinary home it is described as routine. Agricultural and forest land is closed to non-residents.
Romania: EU and EEA citizens buy on the same conditions as Romanians. Non-EU citizens can own buildings and apartments directly. For land, their rights depend on reciprocity treaties, which the sources we found say have not been concluded, so buying a house with its own plot or a bare plot needs a specific legal solution (for example a right of superficies or a Romanian company). We could not confirm every detail from an official text. See EU vs non-EU property rules.
Process and risks
Czechia: ownership passes on registration in the cadastre, signatures are usually officially verified, and the money should go through a lawyer's or bank escrow. Hungary: the land registry transfer can take months, so keep the escrow until registration, and older Budapest buildings can have a renovation backlog. Romania: the sale deed is notarised, a non-Romanian speaker normally needs a sworn interpreter, the e-Terra registry went offline on 14 July 2026 after a ransomware attack and restarted in stages from 11 August 2026, and older Bucharest blocks may carry a seismic risk class. A bargain price in any of the three is a reason for more checks of title, liens and building arrears, not fewer.
Rental tax and short-term letting
Reported rates (verify for the current year): Czechia 15% up to roughly CZK 1.68 million of taxable income and 23% above it, with an option of a 30% lump-sum cost deduction; Hungary 15% on rental income; Romania 10% after a flat 20% deduction, with health-insurance contributions possible above thresholds.
Short-term letting differs sharply. Budapest is the most restrictive: reports say District VI banned short-term rentals from 1 January 2026 after the Supreme Court upheld the local decree, and a national moratorium on new registrations until the end of 2026 and other limits were reported, which we could not confirm from a single official text. In Romania, short-term rental is regulated locally and by tourism registration rules. Condominium rules can forbid short lets in all three. Model long-term rent first; see short-term vs long-term rental. We do not state yields for these three because we have no verified figures.
If you live in Poland or another EU country, your home country may also tax foreign rent; see tax on foreign rental income for Polish residents.
Residence
None of the three grants residence for buying a home, as far as we found. In Hungary the Guest Investor programme dropped its real-estate option in 2025 and was described as stalled in 2026. In Romania a draft golden visa with a 400,000 euro threshold was reported, but we could not confirm it is in force. In Czechia, plan your residence status separately. Do not base a purchase on a residence expectation.
Mortgage
Czech banks lend to non-residents on their own terms (one aggregator reports about 70% to 80% loan-to-value, not a promise), and mortgage rates reached their highest level since early 2024, see our report. In Hungary mortgages for non-residents are limited. See mortgages for non-residents.
For Russian-speaking buyers
Prague, Budapest and Bucharest all have Russian-speaking lawyers and agents. In the sources we opened we found no general national ban on purchases by individual Russian or Belarusian citizens in Czechia, but we cannot confirm that none exists, and EU sanctions apply to listed persons. In Hungary the permit procedure involves checks by public bodies; in Romania holders of a Russian or Belarusian passport should check current restrictions with the lawyer first. In all three, banks and notaries apply source-of-funds and sanctions checks; answer fully and with documents. See buying with Russian citizenship: country restrictions and bank checks for Russian citizens living in the EU. Everything must be lawful and traceable.
Who should choose which
- If you are a non-EU citizen and want the simplest route to an apartment, lean to Czechia, accepting the high price level of Prague.
- If you want a large, liquid capital and can wait a few weeks for a permit as a non-EU buyer, lean to Hungary, accepting the 4% duty and restrictions on short lets in Budapest.
- If a lower entry price matters and you buy an apartment (not a plot), lean to Romania, accepting the registry delays, seismic checks in older blocks and the land-structure question for houses.
- If you plan Airbnb income, check district and building rules first in all three; Budapest is the hardest.
FAQ
Can a non-EU citizen buy an apartment in each country? In Czechia and Romania in practice yes (confirm with a lawyer); in Hungary with a government office permit. Which has no transfer tax? Czechia, since 2020; Hungary charges 4%, and Romania charges notary and registration fees. Is Bucharest cheaper than Prague? On the asking prices we cite, per m² in local currency, Bucharest is at about 2,160 euro and Prague at about CZK 153,100; convert at today's rate. Does buying give me residence? Not in any of the three, as far as we found. Can I buy remotely? In all three with a power of attorney that meets local requirements, or by travelling once; ask your lawyer.
How we help
We are a trilingual platform (English, Russian, Polish) that finds properties and coordinates independent local lawyers and tax advisers. See all countries and the country comparison tool. This text is informational and is not legal, tax or investment advice; rules change, so verify the current position with official sources such as the Hungarian government portal and the Romanian land registry agency and with your advisers.